Canadian actor Bruce Greenwood will be playing Captain Christopher Pike in the new Star Trek film.

Although not a big-name star, Greenwood's work will be familier to many moviegoers. The actor played President Kennedy in Thirteen Days, Truman Capote's lover in Capote, and also had a role in the science fiction blockbuster I, Robot. On television, Greenwood had roles on St. Elsewhere and Knots Landing, and the lead role on the critically acclaimed series Nowhere Man, one of the first series aired by Star Trek: Voyager network UPN. Most recently, Greenwood starred in the HBO drama series John from Cincinnati.

The Hollywood Reporter article announcing the news provided few other details, beyond providing a brief overview of the role of Pike in Trek lore. The character first appeared in the unaired Original Series pilot "The Cage" as captain of the Enterprise, only to be replaced by the character of Kirk for "Where No Man Has Gone Before" when actor Jeffrey Hunter refused to appear in the second pilot. Footage of Hunter as Pike was later used for the two-part TOS episode "The Menagerie."

The eleventh Star Trek film started production yesterday. It's not known whether Greenwood was already present to film scenes, or whether he will start work later on during the five-month filming period.

For the original article from the Hollywood Reporter, please follow this link.

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